apparently, to perceive how closely the origins of Sin and Death resemble those assigned them by Milton. Sin (Pecché) springs ready born from the "deble," or devil, and is by him indoctrinated "de sa plus tricherousse guile.' With her he took such joy in secret as resulted in the birth of Death, by whom, again, she was the mother of Pride, Envy, Avarice, Anger, Sloth, Gluttony, and Lechery. It is difficult to believe that Milton was not acquainted with the work of his predecessor, though it is, of course, possible that the same source supplied both. The pictures of the daughters and grandchildren of Sin recall to some extent the method of Spenser. Anticipations of Milton are to be found, 11. 10730-50, where Gower speaks of the "Griffoun" and the Arimaspi[an]," and elsewhere. That the 'Mirour de l'Omme will repay sustained perusal we dare not say. A glance through it, accompanied by a study of such passages as arrest attention, is, however, a not unpleasant task. It is otherwise with the Cinkante Balades,' which follow, and are taken from the MS. at Trentham Hall. These repay serious attention. Warton doubts whether French poets of the time, circa 1350, are responsible for anything superior. Mr. Macaulay would assign them a decidedly later date. A large and serviceable glossary facilitates the reading of these poems, which also have been printed for the Roxburghe Club. Philologically the entire work is of exceeding interest. One is struck by the large number of French words used precisely as they are in modern English-e.g., carpenter, claret, draper, noise, treacle, truant, &c. Mr. Macaulay's task is, so far as we are able to judge, admirably executed, and his comments and notes have great value. It will add to the attractions of the book for our readers when we say that in appearance it is similar to the Chaucer' of Prof. Skeat, and in intention it is complementary. The Early Married Life of Maria Josepha, Lady Stanley. With Extracts from Sir John Stanley's Præterita. Edited by Jane H. Adeane. (Longmans & Co.)

THE GIRLHOOD OF MARIA JOSEPHA HOLROYD, LADY STANLEY OF ALDERLEY,' edited by her grandchild Jane H. Adeane, drew attention to a pleasant and attractive individuality. Three years after its appearance it has been followed by what may be regarded as a companion volume or supplement, which is in no respect inferior in value or interest. The daughter of John Baker Holroyd, the first Earl of Sheffield, the friend of Gibbon, Maria Josepha married, 11 October, 1796, John Thomas Stanley, of Alderley Park, Cheshire, who, on the death of his father, became Sir John Stanley, and was ultimately created the first Lord Stanley of Alderley. We know that she was a brunette, and, on the authority of Gibbon, that she was "an accomplished and elegant young woman and a pure diamond," with some asperities that might with advantage be softened. She appears to have been a loyal and, in the main, an excellent wife, who discharged worthily her duties, including those of maternity, made her husband fairly happy, and assisted in his advancement. Her correspondence with her relatives and intimate associates is principally domestic, but furnishes occasional glimpses into a world of literature and art. Gibbon's name naturally presents itself in the course of the volume, and there are references also to Cowper, the poet, and Hannah More, who seems to have been regarded as a person of very great importance. Sidelight is

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also thrown upon the stage-upon Mrs. Nesbitt, Betty (the Infant Roscius), Mrs. Siddons, and Edmund Kean. Some of the opinions expressed are a little startling, but are useful, if only as a corrective for those who have listened to a chorus of unmixed eulogy. Here is a sufficiently pregnant paragraph, administering castigation all round, which we quote in full. It is dated 6 May, [1816]: "I was much disappointed with Miss O'Neill in The Grecian Daughter.' She wants expression of countenance sadly for such characters, and I remembered Mrs. Siddons too well-in-Fiddlestick!-it was not Miss O'Neill, but Kean I have to talk about. Euphrasia's failings have been recorded: but it is ditto for him. Kemble acts and looks Penruddock in a much superior manner, and Kean's shocking voice and mean appearance are horrible defects, and the rest of the actors are so bad that altogether I was tired of the performance. Lucy was much interested in watching Lord Byron's countenance and envying the lady who sat next him every time he spoke to her, and the lady, whoever she was (not Lady B.), laughed a great deal and proved Conrad was not in a gloomy fit." It may help those unfamiliar with the stage in the time of the Georges to say that Euphrasia is the heroine of The Grecian Daughter' and Penruddock the hero of The Wheel of Fortune,' a part played by Kemble three days previously, 3 May, 1816. Many pleasant references are made to Miss Catherine Maria Fanshawe, the poetess. With regard to the famous enigma on the letter H, which was attributed to Lord Byron, and is quoted, p. 406, in this volume, we have the following explicit statement, setting the matter at rest: "Apropos of Venice and of my Lord Byron and of the letter H, I do give it under my hand and seal this 12th day of February, 1819, that to the best of my belief the enigma of the letter H was composed, not by the Right Honble. George Lord Byron, but by me [signed] Cath. Maria Fanshawe." An interesting conversation between Mr. Davenport and Napoleon Bonaparte at Elba is given pp. 347-53. An epigram on Napoleon, sent by Theresa Villiers, is amusing, but obvious: "Somebody wrote on an inn window Tutti questi Francesi sono Ladri, sono Ladri,' to which another person added underneath: Non tutti, non tutti, Buona-parte, Buona-parte."" A curious, if familiar light on manners in 1803 is furnished by Lady Stanley, who tells of a serious and dangerous fall of her husband. She continues: "A most severe headache followed next day, though he saved himself at dinner as much as possible. All his guests, however, were as drunk as ever I had the pleasure of seeing anybody." How the all is to be taken we know not. The guests, twentysix in number, included Lord and Lady Bulkeley, Mr. and Mrs. Glegg, Mr. and Mrs. Atherton, Mr. Bell, the curate, and others. Lord Stanley's

Præterita,' as he called them-half a century before Mr. Ruskin used the term-are very readable. A number of family portraits, admirably reproduced, add greatly to the attractions of a delightful volume.

By Moor and Fell: Landscapes and Lang-settle Lore from West Yorkshire. By Halliwell Sutcliffe. (Fisher Unwin.)

Or those West Riding dales which enshrine the upper waters of the Aire and the Wharfe Mr. Sutcliffe has constituted himself the historian and the painter. Among his qualifications for his self

imposed task are intimate knowledge and warm affection. In his 'Ricroft of Withens'-a work which disappoints only in recalling too strongly "Lorna Doone-and doubtless in other works which we have not read, he has given a picturesque and an animated account of the country between Bingley and Skipton and its denizens. His present work, which begins with Haworth and the Brontës, and deals largely with Skipton and the Cliffords, constitutes delightful reading. Mr. Sutcliffe has, indeed, great descriptive ability, and brings vividly before us the scenes and characters he exhibits, a task in which he is aided by Mr. George Hering, whose illustrations add to the charm of the volume. We like Mr. Sutcliffe better, on the whole, when he deals with scenery than with incident, some of his pictures of heroic deeds striking us as a little too set. As a rule his diction is pleasing. We are but half satisfied with his use, more than once, of "profligate" for prodigal. Whencesoever derived (it is not West Riding), the "theftuous foot of time" is a vile phrase. We do not like "antiquarians," as a substantive, for antiquaries (see p. 251). A word such as "dependable" is unpardonable while we have trustworthy; and we cannot easily overlook a Shakespearian misquotation such as appears p. 296, My horse, my horse! My kingdom for a horse!" These are, however, but unimportant matters. Mr. Sutcliffe has written a book with something of the bracing character of his native hills. Some things in his pages are quite new to us, and the story of the second White Doe of Rylstone is prettily told and very moving.

University Magazines and their Makers. By H. C. Marillier. (Privately printed.)

MR. MARILLIER has enriched the privately printed opuscula of the Sette of Odd Volumes, many of which are already counted as rarities, with a little work of much interest. He has issued, in a strictly limited edition, a bibliography of university magazines. The number of these is much larger than we thought, and the list, though it does not pretend to completeness, is very long. To add to the value of the book he includes in it admirably executed facsimiles of frontispieces, covers, and other features of interest. Among these are the frontispiece to the Student, afterwards known as the Oxford and Cambridge Miscellany, Oxford, 1750; Hogarth's frontispiece to Terre Filius, Oxford, 1721; the cover design to Momus, Cambridge, 1868; that to the Oxford Magazine, which is still in existence; those, again, to the Isis (with a fine view of "the High"), the Cambridge Review, the Cambridge A.B.C., and the Granta. Full information is supplied as to the writers in the various periodicals, existent or passed away. The work is admirably done, and will warmly commend itself to the members of both universities. It is tantalizing our readers to recommend a work that can only be obtained by private interest or favour. We counsel, however, such of them as have influence with members of the Sette to use it, even at the risk of becoming nuisances.

MR. HENRY FROWDE has sent us two charming minute copies of Walton's Compleat Angler. A quarter of an ordinary sheet of note-paper suffices to cover both these tiny books laid side by side; yet, by the aid of the well-known india paper, readable print is secured, and the pretty bindings contain nearly 600 pages.

THE REV. J. BOWSTEAD WILSON, F.S.A., writes: "In a recent number of 'N. & Q.' my friend the Rev. W. M. Kingsmill was mentioned as one of the four surviving contributors to the first issue of N. & Q. The following notice will show you that he, too, has joined the majority: January 13, at Tibberton Vicarage, the Rev. William Major Kingsmill, M.A., for thirty-five years Rector of Bredicot and Vicar of Tibberton, within ten days of completing his seventy-fifth year."

A NEW and amended edition of Prof. A. Campbell Fraser's Life and Works of Bishop Berkeley,' originally issued in 1871, is now in preparation, and will probably be ready for publication by the Clarendon Press before the end of the present The Works' (including the posthumous year. writings, first published in 1871) will be arranged in chronological order, with additional material since discovered and with the dissertations and annotations carefully revised and to a great extent rewritten. The Life' will be curtailed. Prof. Campbell Fraser will be glad to receive any fresh biographical or bibliographical information, or corrections of errors in his first edition, and communications may be addressed to him at the University Press, Oxford.

Notices to Correspondents

We must call special attention to the following notices:

ON all communications must be written the name and address of the sender, not necessarily for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith.

WE cannot undertake to answer queries privately. To secure insertion of communications corre

spondents must observe the following rules. Let each note, query, or reply be written on a separate slip of paper, with the signature of the writer and such address as he wishes to appear. When answering queries, or making notes with regard to previous entries in the paper, contributors are requested to put in parentheses, immediately after the exact heading, the series, volume, and page or pages to Correspondents who repeat which they refer. queries are requested to head the second communication "Duplicate."

EGERIA ("Instruction in the Rules of Poetry").— There is, so far as we know, no such work as you seek. Dr. Guest on English Rhythm' is erudite, but scarcely popular.

H. BROUGHTON.-The Shelley Society, founded by Mr. Furnivall, is now, we believe, defunct.

A. F. C.-Many thanks.

Mann of 20 April, 1757, is the last of that month in Cunningham's edition, it seems obvious that the letter to Conway which has been discussed should follow it, and should be inserted (regardless of its present date) between Nos. 500 and 501 in vol. iii.

It may appear a somewhat bold proceeding to discard the printed date of this letter, but experience shows that the printed dates at present borne by certain of Walpole's letters are wrong. For instance, letter 441 in Cunningham's edition is dated by Cunningham "March 21, 1755," and Mann is given as the addressee, whereas its correct date is 31 Oct., 1755, and it is addressed to Bentley.

Letter 536 is dated "Dec. 23, 1757," whereas it has been proved to belong to December, 1756, with which date it was printed over again by Cunningham in his appendix. Letter 1436 is dated "June 12, 1772," but belongs to June, 1775. Letter 2292 is dated “Jan. 13, 1784," but belongs to January, 1785. It is evident, therefore, that the printed dates of Horace Walpole's letters are not always to be relied upon.

HELEN TOYNBEE.

P.S.-Since the above was written I find

that letter 522, as printed by Wright and Cunningham, is incomplete. As printed in Miss Berry's 'Journals' (vol. ii. p. 28) it contains a paragraph which has been omitted by Wright and Cunningham. In this paragraph reference is made to the will of "Lord Fitzwilliams," i. e., the first Earl Fitzwilliam, who died on 10 Aug., 1756. This, again, points rather to April, 1757, than to September of that year.

SHAKESPEARIANA.

'ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA,' I. i. 18 (9th S. iv. 453). MR. THISELTON'S note is a very valuable one. He has done students of Shakespeare good service in directing attention to the fact that the comma is made to serve purposes other than that of punctuation. But I do not think that the passage which he takes as his text affords a case in point. Here the comma, for which a colon might very well be substituted, seems to me to mark punctuation, and nothing else. Antony in his languid laziness is too indolent to utter a single word more than necessary. To the announcement of the messenger,

therefore enter on no details, but give the sum as briefly as you can." What falls from Cleopatra convinces me that this is the meaning. She says, "Nay, hear them"-the news" in full, not it, the CC mere sum." That news "should be the subject of a verb in the singular, and yet be referred to by a pronoun in the plural, is not unexampled. We find the same anomaly in Richard III., IV. iv. 534-6. R. M. SPENCE, D.D.

66

Manse of Arbuthnott, N.B.

6

'TEMPEST,' II. i. 278-80 (9th S. iii. 63; iv. 221).-To be brief, it is when these con sciences are candied that they do not baulk Antonio in his ambitious plans; it is only when melted (active) that they would become dangerous. Antonio does not answer quite as MR. PALMER states. He first disposes of the question as to his own conscience, and then turns to that of consciences in general

that is, disclaims any such inconvenient possession, and offers his success in wholesale corruption as proof that he is not singular in this respect. Antonio's remark, “Twenty consciences that stand 'twixt me and Milan,'

&c., looks strangely like the language of fact blooded act of usurpation. -a simple statement regarding a coldE. MERTON DEY.

St. Louis.

'TEMPEST,' III. i. 9-15 (9th S. iv. 303).—I cannot ask you to lumber your pages with a repetition of my notes, more especially as my final one on this passage, to which I still adhere, occupies nearly two columns, nor do I wish anew to enter into a controversy with MR. E. MERTON DEY, for whom I have great esteem. I must therefore content myself with asking all interested in this famous "crux" to have the kindness to read my note (7th S. vii. 403), with its brief supplement (7th S. viii. 402), and, comparing it with MR. DEY'S, to judge between us.

R. M. SPENCE, D.D.

Manse of Arbuthnott, N.B.

News, my good lord, from Rome,

Grates me, the sum.

Four monosyllables are made as best they may to express the thoughts, "No news from Rome can be other than disagreeable to me,

66

"

"brandisht steele, which smoak'd with bloody execution." The use of the word "quarell by Holinshed is no reason why we should restrict Shakespeare's liberty of choice.

ALFRED E. THISELTON.

'THE MERCHANT OF VENICE,' I. i. 29-36.Should I go to church

And see the holy edifice of stone,
And not bethink me straight of dangerous rocks,
Which touching but my vessel's side
Would scatter all her spices on the stream,
Enrobe the roaring waters with my silks;
And, in a word, but even now worth this,
And now worth nothing?

Furness gives following note:

"Dyce (ed. iii.) records Lettsom's opinion that something is wanting between this line (34) and the next, an opinion probably founded on the difficulty of understanding the meaning of 'this' in line 35. "The meaning here,' says Clarendon, 'is obscure, and the construction abrupt, if "this" refers to spices and silks just mentioned. As the text stands, the actor may be supposed to complete the sense by a gesture, extending his arms.' If this is the only explanation, and I can neither find nor offer any better, the gesture as expressive of great wealth is, I am afraid, a little weak."

May we not understand that "this" is used to indicate something definite--an actual ascertainable value; that the merchandise would have brought so much on the market? -"but even now worth so much, and now worth nothing." E. MERTON DEY.

"THE MERCHANT OF VENICE,' I. i. 140-5.— In my schooldays, when I had lost one shaft, I shot his fellow of the selfsame flight The selfsame way with more advised watch, To find the other forth; and by adventuring both, I oft found both: I urge this childhood proof, Because what follows is pure innocence. The expression "pure innocence" would seem to mean "all honesty of purpose." Bassanio wishes by his present plans to secure a fortune, not in order to indulge in further extravagance, but to repay in kind the advances of his friend. Knowing Portia, and divining her liking for him

copy of a speech in Parliament upon the subject of enclosures: "Surely, Mr. Speaker, a desperate disease must have a desperate medicine" (Historical MSS. Commission, 'Calendar of the Cecil MSS.,' part vii. p. 542). This is of earlier date than the 'Hamlet' of our knowledge. Was the expression proverbial, or only "an intelligent anticipation" of Shakspeare? ALFRED F. ROBBINS.

PARISH AND OTHER ACCOUNTS.

(Concluded from 9th S. iv. 453.) Westminster.-Extracts from the Churchwardens' Accounts of St. Margaret's, Westminster, fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Reprinted from the Builder, August, 1880. 10,347 aa. 8.

Antiquary, First Series. Ancient Feasting.-Account of a banquet in 1309. Antiquary, ii. 9. PP. 1,925 dd.

Prices of Provisions temp. Edward I., Edward II., and Edward III. Ib., ii. 28.

Lancaster, Earl of.-Domestic expenses for 1313. b., ii. 34.

Northamptonshire Prices in 1690. Ib., ii. 242.

PP. 1,925 dd.

Ancaster. Extracts from Churchwardens' Accounts, seventeenth century. Ib., ii. 235. PP. | 1,925 dd. Prices of Corn in 1587. Ib., iii. 4. PP. 1,925 dd. Abingdon.-Banquet accounts, sixteenth century. Ib., iii. 162. PP. 1,925 dd.

Edward VI. Ib., xxi. 165, 210; xxii. 28, &c.; xxiii. List of Inventories of Church goods made temp. 37, 270; xxiv. 31, &c. ; xxv. 37; xxvi.; xxvii. 218; xxviii. 69, &c. ; xxix. 81; and xxx. 26, 164. Antiquary, Second Series.

A Schoolboy's Bill, A.D. 1547. Ib., i. 277. PP. 1,898 0. Article by Hubert Hall.

Early Army Accounts. b. ii. 41. PP. 1,898 0. Schoolboy's Bill, A.D. 1,898 o.

Lawyer's Bill, temp. PP. 1,898 0.

1598. Ib., ii. 264. PP.

Charles I. Ib., iii. 182.

Exchequer Accounts. Ib., iv. 16. PP. 1,898 0. Revenue Accounts of the Reign of Richard II. Article by Sir J. Ramsay. Ib., iv. 203. PP. 1,898 o.

Accounts of Henry IV. Ib., vi. 100. PP. 1,898 0. Extracts from Accounts of R. Bax, a Surrey Yeoman, 1648-1662. Ib., vi. 162. PP. 1,898 0. Bassingbourne.-Extracts from Churchwardens' Accounts, 1497-1540. Ib., vii. 24. PP. 1,898 0. Accounts of Henry V. Ib., viii. 94. PP. 1,898 0. Accounts of Henry VI. Ib., x. 191; and xiv. 96. PP. 1,898 0.

Beginners in Business, 1607. Article containing some merchants' accounts. Ib., xv. 100. PP. 1,898 o.

Accounts of Edward IV. Ib., xvi. 185, 237. PP. 1,898 0.

Stanford-in-the-Vale.

Extracts from Church

wardens' Accounts, 1552-1602. Ib., xvii. 70, 168, 209. PP. 1,898 o.

Winchester.-Short extract from Surveyor's Account, 1761. 1b., xvii. 172. PP. 1,898 o.